53 A Subtle Shift part 1
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(General P.O.V)
Wally tapped his foot on the floor rapidly. He reached out his hand into the bag of chips he was holding and groaned, it was empty. Sighing he balled up the bag and tried to do a dunk on the trash bin, only to fail and get subjected to Black Canary's unimpressed look.
"Sorry babe. What was the question again?"
Black Canary placed down her pad and levelled a serious gaze at him.
"You need to pay attention Wally, while this might seem like something unrelated to you, it still affected some of your teammates greatly. This is an example of how a mission can go bad and not get any easier from there. You need to talk about it."
Wally frowned.
"Hey, I never said it was unrelated to me. It's just…I was passed out for most of the time. I can't tell you anything more than Rob or Artemis have."
"Then tell me what you can."
Black Canary insisted.
Wally was quiet for a few seconds before sighing and running a hand across his hair.
"I was…I was useless. I always pack more than one snack bar to keep myself up and running, even if the mission goes sideways. This time I packed less, thinking it was a simple recon mission. With our luck I should have known that something would go wrong." He tightened his hands into fists.
"If I'd only been a little more prepared, I would have helped Robin and Artemis fight those…things off and maybe Rob wouldn't have been hurt so badly. I'm just really happy that they are all fine."
Black Canary nodded in understanding, while feeling pity for the teen.
"Wally, it wasn't your fault. What happened was an oversight yes, but that does not mean you're to blame. If you still feel that way then you're being unfair to yourself. You only have control until you don't. And sometimes that's okay because we learn to accept our mistakes and weaknesses. This leads to us doing better next time when the stakes are even higher."
Black Canary's words were soft and inspiring. Normally that would have worked on just about anyone if it wasn't for the situation.
"Yeah well, tell that to Aden who's currently missing."
Wally responded while standing up. Black Canary sighed as she watched him go. The veteran superheroine brought her fingers to the temples and gently rubbed. Things hadn't been easy ever since the team had teleported into the Watchtower from wherever they had previously been at. None of them had had any concrete information apart from describing the creatures they'd fought and Captain Marvel's betrayal.
Canary felt another headache spring up at that. Captain Marvel was a child. Billy Batson, 10 years old and the responsibility of saving the world firmly on his shoulders. Since 2 years ago to be exact. The league was soon convening to discuss whether or not he should remain as part of the Justice League or not. That other matters as well. Aden Strong. Canary had grown closer to the boy, she had even mentored him on how to use his sonic abilities. But now he was missing. On a lesser note, the rest of the junior team also knew about his…other side.
None of them were saying anything at the moment but she expected that Aden would face some questions once he got back. If he ever…Canary squashed that thought and tapped her earpiece. Partly to distract her from the grim thoughts.
"It's less than I feared but more than I had hoped. All of them are scarred by the whole incident. Guilt being the common feeling they all share."
Batman uncharacteristically sighed from his end. His usually stoic attitude was broken by the implications of just how badly the mission had gone.
"Don't worry. He is a strong kid. Wherever he is I'm sure he's doing ok."
Black Canary tried to comfort and ease what he thought was Batman's worry for Aden.
"I am concerned about his well-being but that is not the problem. The problem is that the whole dome disappeared at exactly the same time the others appeared inside the Watchtower. Everything points to him being responsible. Taking into account his mental state at that time…"
"You're worried that the other side of him might take advantage of the dome in some way or other."
"Exactly. None of our attacks had any outward effect on that shield of energy. That kind of technology should not be in anyone's hands let alone a teenager with a split personality and access to as much power as Maelstrom does."
Batman's tone was clinical as usual and his words logical.
"Then I guess we just have to find him before anyone else does. All of our questions will be answered then."
Canary still held out hope that the situation would blow over. The thing she didn't want to voice was the possibility that they didn't get to Aden first.
The kind of power he possessed currently and the resource he held in his hands - if Batman's theory was to be believed - tended to attract those with nefarious intent.
(Aden's P.O.V)
When I came to, it was on the floor of the Watchtower's hall. My body had slammed onto the table of the Justice League hall before Wonder woman, an effect from the forceful teleportation.
"By Hera!"
The beautiful Amazon had shouted in shock and brandished her sword at me.
"Diana wait!"
Captain Atom who was the closest to her, stopped her before she could probably split me into two. Amazon's were violent. Especially started ones. Flash instantly blitzed over to my side and helped me up as I groaned at the muddled feeling in my head.
"You're okay. You're gonna be fine."
He told me while stopping me from falling down to the ground. Welp, I now knew the effects of using the Avatar State for too long. It left me feeling weak and dizzy.
My feet touched the ground and I was led to a lone chair, in-between Superman and Green Arrow. I took note of that but didn't ponder why there were two empty chairs along the table. With most of the League present, this didn't seem like an absent with permission sort of thing. Most of the League was standing up and in various stances of readiness.
"Anyone else think that this is a sign? We were just discussing about him and he just so happens to fall from the sky? This is how we get our answers."
Arrow started off just as Barry sped off and came back with a glass of water. I held the glass in my hand and gulped it down.
"Are you seriously suggesting we question him when he's like this? Look at him, he can barely say a thing. We should let him rest and convene again at a later date once we find out more."
Black Canary suggested and most of the Leaguers nodded in agreement.
"We still have the matter of Red Tornado to discuss. Flash can you get Maelstrom to one of the rooms in the Watchtower?"
"On it Supes."
The Flash said and suddenly disappeared while carrying me. Once we stopped, I stumbled out of his hold and heaved, feeling sick from the fast speed. I heaved at the garbage bin on the corner of the room.
"Sorry Kid. It's usually like that for everyone at first." He started off, looking sorry.
"Rest up. I'll be over in a while with something for you to eat. I doubt you've had anything for the past 24 hours."
Now that he mentioned it, my stomach grumbled in hunger.
The Flash chuckled and left. I went to the bathroom and threw water on my face. 24 hours? What the heck had happened? The last thing I remember was giving control over to the Avatar State and then...then nothing. I took a deep breath and released it slowly. I hoped the rest were okay. Judging from Flash's usual exuberance, I would say that nothing too bad had happened and that the rest were probably fine.
I went back to the bed and sat on it, patting it a little.
"Hello old friend. I hope you're happy to see me again."
This room was the same one I had used the last time I'd been on the Watchtower. I'd never thought I'd find myself here again but this just shows that the future is unpredictable. Flash came back with a plate of spaghetti and meatballs and a can of Pepsi and left me to my devices.
I devoured the food and sent a word of prayer for the chef because of how goddamn good the meal was. After doing that, my expression shifted to a serious one. For starters, I maximized the display icon in my vision and read over the information detailed on it. Fire-bending was already unlocked with a beginner tagged at the end but my vision was drawn somewhere else.
Training Points: 5.
Wait. 5? Only five training points for that absolute fuck-fest of a mission? I swallowed down my disappointment and decided to check out the training database for which character I could purchase for five training points. A yawn escaped my mouth and my priorities were shifted. What I needed and wanted to do was sleep. Despite being completely out of it during the Avatar State, I felt mentally exhausted.
My head hit the pillow and I passed out without a second thought.
(General P.O.V)
"My scans indicate remnants of the same energy signature from the alien dome slightly coming off of him. Not enough to cause any long term effects but enough that I picked up on it."
Hal told the collective League members. Batman stood up at the head of the table.
"Then let us conclude this discussion. Who agrees to keep Aden Strong suspended from the team, until we have clearly understood where he was for the last 10 hours and decided if his mental state puts the rest of them at risk. Let us put it on vote."
(General P.O.V)
"This seems like a bad idea."
M'gann said while floating in the air. The rest of the team was gathered around Robin who was busy trying to break into Aden's room.
"It is." Kaldur agreed.
"A huge breach of trust infact. But M'gann, we need answers, especially considering what we saw inside that place. Aden hiding such a huge secret from the rest of us not only put us in a lot of danger but also compromised the trust between allies."
"That doesn't make it okay. No matter how any of us try to justify it. It's still going behind his back."
Artemis said while crossing her hands. Out of everyone around, she felt the most uncomfortable. Not only because of her apparent like for the dark skinned hunk but because of her own secret. A secret only Aden knew and had decided to keep quiet about. What she was allowing felt like a betrayal.
"She's right. We're going too far. Aden still deserves a right to his secrets. He hasn't done anything bad to deserve us breaking into his room to investigate him."
Connor backed the two girls.
"I'm sorry but personally I want to know who I'm working with. Who is watching my back and…Aden hasn't exactly been forthcoming about himself."
Wally countered while shrugging.
"That's what secret identities are for Wally. None of you know about my civilian life because I try my best to separate it from the hero thing. That's not a crime in our line of work."
Artemis shook her head.
"I think we should just turn back while we can. What if one of the league…"
M'gann's words were cut off by the sudden swing of Aden's room door. Robin turned to look at them while smirking.
"Too late to turn back now. Plus, you're all forgetting one thing. This investigation might give us a lead on where we can find our missing teammate."
Kaldur sighed and looked at the others.
"I will not force any of you to do this if you don't want to. If we do go through with it and Aden finds out, it might have irreparable damage to all our relationships. This is your last chance to turn around and walk away."
"Sheesh Kaldur you make it sound as if we're planning a murder."
Wally spoke up only to have Artemis bonk him on the head.
"Ow."
He looked at her aggrieved but the blonde simply waved her hand threateningly.
"I have a question Kaldur. What if we do find something. Something bad?"
Robin's tone suddenly turned serious and subdued. Before answering Kaldur took a deep breath.
"Let's just do this."
Connor beat him to the punch and shoved the door completely open. Kaldur couldn't help but feel relieved.
Robin sighed and put away his kit.
"So not feeling the aster."
(Aden's P.O.V)
The second time I woke up was to a soft knock on the door. I ran a hand through my face and got out of the soft bed. Clearly the League had not spared any expense to make all their stuff the best quality. My steps carried me to the door and once it opened, I came face to face with the Dark Knight himself. The glare was still there, somehow even more intense.
"Batman."
I nodded after looking around him and not noticing any other Leaguer. Oh wait. There! A hazy form rose up from the ground.
"Manhunter."
"It's good to see you're doing alright Aden."
He replied, a small smile on his face.
"Thanks J'onn. Although the mission had a few hiccups here and there...it wasn't something we haven't dealt with before. At this point, it's obvious that 90% of our missions will go wrong."
I opened the door wide after answering, to allow them to come in.
"You're welcome inside."
"No need. This won't take long. We're here to talk to you about something of grave importance, Aden."
My eyes widened minutely at the grim tone.
(A few hours Later)
I stood before the full roster of the Justice League. A chair had been set apart for me but I hadn't sat on it. The second I'd been called into the hall, I'd come in expecting confrontation. I could barely contain my anger. Batman's words kept on running inside my head with no sign of stopping.
I was being suspended from the team. There wasn't even a concrete reason for this! I hadn't hurt anyone. If it wasn't for me, none of the team would be alright. If it wasn't for me, Captain Marvel would still be an agent of the Light. Let's not kid ourselves, it's clear that only they had the ability to acquire such tech.
"Maelstrom do you know why you're here?"
Even Black Canary's usually caring tone sounded pretentious to me.
"I was thinking you could tell me. It's not usually that one gets to stand before the full League. Whatever it is, must be important."
I told them, slight confusion marring my features. Just like planned. Batman spoke up next.
"In light of recent events, the League has decided to question you regarding a few incidents that occured during the Yellowstone national park recon mission."
"A mission that went completely off the rails."
The Flash added.
"From the rest of your team's account you were all teleported away forcefully to a structure hidden in the dark side of the moon, where you were constantly attacked by alien creatures and Captain Marvel who was being controlled."
John Stewart recounted.
Black Canary picked up where he left off.
"During the fight your...other side came out."
I breathed out.
"Things got too dire. I couldn't fight Captain Marvel one on one. So when I blacked out, The Avatar State came out as a means for me to protect myself. To be fair, I don't recall anything that occured afterwards. It's not something I can control yet."
I could see a lot of negative expressions on the faces of some of the heroes. Distrust and dissatisfaction mostly.
"I'm... curious as to the true nature of this Avatar State."
Aquaman started off. Instantly, I felt a subtle shift happen in the room. I shrugged.
"It's not something I can explain very well because I don't have all the details. Think of it has a supercharged version of myself whose only purpose is to protect me and eliminate those seeking to do harm upon my person."
"An apt description from someone claiming to not have all the details."
I narrowed my eyes at Aquaman after he replied.
"I'm concerned. If this version of you is only after your protection and retaliation against your enemies, would you be able to prioritize civilian lives in the middle of the fight or would they be meaningless to you during your vendetta."
Green Arrow someone who's never liked me raised his 'concerns'.
"That's not entirely fair Arrow. Your concerns while warranted are also unrealistic. He cannot control himself while he's in that state. Asking him to account for anything other than his own conscious actions is too much."
Surprisingly Hal Jordan spoke up in my defence.
"They are his actions! What does it say to the public when one of our own puts people at risk because he's not 'himself'? The Justice League would suffer a PR disaster. Such a thing would snowball into more stringent measures by the UN and other nation's governments. We already have places we cannot go to because of that."
Green Arrow shot back, heated. Wow. I really don't have a fan in that guy. My hands tightened as I carefully put a blank look on my face. No I wasn't planning a murder on modern day Robin hood, I swear.
"Except you're wrong Arrow, he's part of a black ops team. Their current role is not entirely about saving lives. That would defeat the purpose of what a black ops team is all about, a stealth group acting in the shadows. There isn't a visible link from him to us, so expecting any of them to act the exact way we do is as Hal said, unrealistic."
Stewart said his piece which brought out arguments from across the table. Only Captain Atom seemed unconcerned about everything that was going on. Dude was always pretty chill.
"Silence. We are getting nowhere with this discussion. Only delaying the inevitable."
Wonder woman stood up and announced.
"We are not here to interrogate him. Maelstrom has done nothing wrong during his tenure with the Junior Team. He has been responsible barring a few instances that were excused due to his inexperience in our line of work and today's aim was to try and understand his situation better and seek out a way to help him."
Help me? Really? I couldn't take it any longer, I started laughing. They all turned to stare at me, unamused. My laughter increased at the expressions on their faces.
"What is so funny boy?"
Hawkman demanded from his seat. The mask on his face made him look more cartoonish than vicious. That didn't help me.
"Maelstrom, I believe I don't need to remind you where you are at the moment. This is a serious matter."
The advise from Black Canary helped me regain my self control.
"I'm sorry... I'm sorry it's just that...I can't get over the hypocrisy some of you have."
There was stunned silence after my words.
"And to me it's really funny that someone like Green Arrow, a vigilante who used to leave people broken and dead before he joined the League can stand there and lecture me about prioritizing civilian lives."
There was a collective intake of breath. Arrow stood up with anger marring his features.
"Watch it. You know nothing..."
"Right. But you do? So it's right for you to pass judgement you color as 'concerns' about me but wrong if I do the same about your bloody past. Like I said before, hypocrisy."
Most of the members hadn't gotten out of their surprise yet. Back Canary actually had her mouth wide open in shock. Arrow looked unsure of what to do. The hostility in his eyes however, showed me where Red Arrow got his arrogance from.
"Stand down Maelstrom. Green Arrow is a member of the Justice League and will be accorded the same respect everyone on this table deserves."
Batman ordered me with a steely gaze in his eyes.
I looked around the room and saw no allies. Not even Black Canary who I had grown closer to or the Lanterns who had come to my rescue.
"This was a trial. No matter what I would have said, it's clear that it was a charade. You've already decided to remove me from the team. Let me make it easier on all of you, I Quit."
I turned on my feet and walked out.
*There is a lot more going on in the background.
